Terms

     The Code Company founder Ben May talks at an industrial gathering (c) thecode.co    

The Code Company, a company that is a specialist in publishing digitally It is among the top partner. They are WordPress specialists, and undertake large-scale changes, such as Integrations and migrations. They've created hundreds of tech stacks to support hundreds of publishing companies.

The company has just announced an upcoming relaunch of Substack huge The Dispatch, a publication which provides information and analysis about politics, policy and culture. It is valued at $1.9 million with many thousands of readers. I talked to Stacey Clark who is part of the partnerships and communications team. She spoke about the organization as well as its offerings:

"Our co-founder Ben May has been using technology to solve issues since he was 10," says Stacey. "He created his first website for a local business at the age of 12, earning around $400." Ben saw an opening for business and a potential profession from it all, which is why he launched his first company at the age of 22.

Code Company Code Company didn't deliberately get into publishing, though it did gain some publishers at first. Stacey says: "We've carved out a segment in technology development to assist digital publishers in addition to moving from other platforms to WordPress and building membership capabilities and ad tech. At first, we were non-platform neutral, and later discovered that the majority of our users were in trouble! Nowadays, we use WordPress and there have been numerous rescue operations that were a result of the different platforms."

"The essential engineering process that is used to create the websites that are published is precisely what we do as our job," Stacey continues. We help publishers solve complicated problems by using WordPress and help them discover how to use technology to "increase the revenue they make, increase efficiency within their company and minimize the risk associated to technology used in businesses".

Stacey and I are of the opinion that technology is becoming less technical, which is crucial for publishing. "Sometimes there are editors, writers of content and marketers who are using technology, and require the capacity to make use of it , without the need to contact engineers every five minutes.These are "wordspeople" and not tech people."

Code Company helps people create or migrate to technology stacks that enable them to become self-sufficient. Code Company helps these people build or migrate to technology stacks that allow them to be self-sufficient "They require a system that is able be able to perform all the tasks it had prior to, but in an more efficient method. The Code Company often works with webmasters who have websites that are which are in the debt of technology. The plugin might not provide all the features they need Therefore, we think it's better to create an integrated system that is customized, to ensure users get the features they need, but not one of the features they do not."

Customers

The Code Company works with content organizations of every kind that range from small-scale publishers to large entertainment companies. The company recently announced the launch of Wondermind which is a mental health-related content hub that is backed by the famous Selena Gomez and Newsette CEO Daniella Pierson. The launch was highly praised by Bhavik Trivedi. The Chief Operating Officer of Wondermind stated: "I've never had a perfect launch. Until now. When it was initially launched, we increased in size with the growth in traffic . Our integrations were flawless."

FuqQ9UfLAmNAKjVpzFCV The brand new Wondermind Content Hub (c) thecode.co

They also partner also with Nine which is the largest entertainment network in Australia. "We built their corporate site as well as publications drive.com.au one of the top auto site along with Future Women, a membership group that caters to women who have a professional career." Code Company also launched a local ads website. Code Company also launched eBay's local ads site. "That was an important one because they never had regional leads before this and they were able to obtain Australian leads from that website," Stacey confirms. "We have recently launched a brand new website called Science Alert, which is an essential science magazine that is a major science publication in the US. It's run from Australia however, the majority of its readers hail from the US. The website was in making for over a year and half!" she remembers.

It appears that the company's sweet spot is working with publishers that are smaller and are seeking to grow. "We want to know"How do you demonstrate that you can publish? What are the best ways to put your business and your tech stack in the right shape to allow you to scale the business?'" Stacey says. This is probably where the majority of The Code Co's clients are located; For instance, there are non-traditional media organizations like the news site Crikey and Her Campus, the female-led college students' media organization in the US (that The Code Company switched away from Drupal to make the switch to WordPress).

     The HerCampus.com content hub across multiple devices (c) thecode.co    

"We assist talented and innovative creators who are annoyed or unhappy with their existing platform along with CMS (content management system)," Stacey adds. "They're looking to us to help them find alternatives because they recognize that the system they're using has limitations on what they can do. It's not flexible enough and also they earn a huge part of their income." In addition the need is becoming increasingly important for all creators to collect data from first third parties. "They're not able to access it through platforms such as Substack. We're working on customized creator stacks that allow creators have their own marketplace," she elaborates.

Services and solutions

The clients of the Code Company could have built their website themselves and/or asked for help from someone to develop the site. In either case they're using a variety of plugins. "As the site has grown it's becoming apparent that their technology is not working properly and they're unable to repair the issue by themselves. It's causing issues, and complaints from the clients, as they're no longer able to perform the tasks they'd like to do. Sometimes, they're not able to accomplish things as basic as adding something to their menus," she confirms.

Mike McPhate at the California Sun affirms: "The biggest problem with my membership website of the past was that it was filled by errors, along with confusing instructions about how to use the site. I got emails almost every day from frustrated readers. The site was created jointly and The Code Company and , I'm not receiving mails from users, and it's a huge relief!"

The California Sun (c)thecode.co

It is well-known that performance is crucial for publishing companies "If they fail to perform, it could mean thousands of dollars," Stacey continues. "And they're still hacking off one plugin before settling to the next. They keep dropping their performance until they're no longer effective. Then they'll come with us carrying this huge technological stack , squealing behind the scenes, aware that there is a risk of shutting down the site because of the performance."

Publishers are trying to diversify their income sources, and many are considering subscriptions and memberships. "We need to find a solution that is reliable as well as secure. Our primary task is to find options that can transform the way that publishers function," she says. Code Company Code Company works particularly on the idea of membership, which is designed to avoid"leaky payment walls." Stacey describes as "leaky payments walls". She explains: "We've worked with other subscription solutions in the past and it's very simple to get around the paywall. If your model of business relies on publishing or is dependent on content which is paid for it can be a huge problem."

New projects and events are coming up in the near future.

"The demand for creators has grown exponentially," Stacey notes. "Creators are beginning to recognize that SaaS platforms have limitations, so they're wanting to look at other possibilities. The need for diversification will remain for the publishers, however it's equally important to explore new methods to engage with customers by providing more targeted and personalized information. The subscription offerings aren't just generating revenue, they give the opportunity to get closer to viewers and boost engagement."

"There remain print magazines out in the world that aren't fully digital. However, we're seeing requests from magazines that are realizing that, in order for them to exist, it is necessary to transition in some manner to digital . A subscription service might be one way to do this."

In the context of recent occasions "Ben is a well-known face on conferences," adds Stacey. Recently, Ben delivered a speech at the Mumbrella Publisher Conference in Australia, and WordCamp US in San Diego. The presentations covered the concept of the creator economy and focused on "the minimalist publisher' as well as the ways that publishers can achieve more using the resources available to them. You can also take lessons from the founders of large publishing houses and, often, using membership services.

     The founder Ben May is a familiar name on the circuit of conferences (c) thecode.co    

It seems the company founder has a deep understanding of the business. "Ben's worked in the field throughout his career, and there's never a problem he's not capable to solve," says Stacey. "The feedback I get from conversations with my clients is that in the event of problems, they could be required to pay another agency for 2 weeks for a visit to determine. The technical staff of Code Company Code Company can literally solve it in 20 minutes over the phone since they've seen all of these issues. It's a major benefit for businesses in the market to have this kind of problem-solving capability."

In conclusion, Stacey says: "Publishing or managing a site does not have to be more complicated than people believe it to be. Our whole ethos is anti-complexity." We recognize that it's simple to become caught up in the most recent technology, themes or plug-ins "these flashing lights don't have the ability to shift the needle at all," she smiles.

Code Company Code Company revels in "smart simple things" It appears. Stacey declares: "We offer the chance to locate a technology partner that can assist you in attain the outcomes you're looking for by applying the most simple manner that's efficient, not by employing a buzzword."

More information

For further information on The Code Company, to learn about case studies of prior integrations and migrations and to find out more details about collaboration with them, visit their site thecode.co.

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